A PRESTIGIOUS hospitality awards ceremony is taking place in the North-East for the first time in its 27 year history.

The Acorn Awards, whose past winners include Gary Rhodes and Marco Pierre White, will be held at Rockliffe Hall in Hurworth near Darlington this June.

The awards honour exceptional people under 30 in the hotels, restaurants and contract catering industry and are organised by the Caterer and Hotelkeeper magazine.

Previous ceremonies have taken place in exclusive venues such as Bovey Castle in Devon and the Malmaison in Oxford, and the managing director of Rockliffe Hall, Nick Holmes, is delighted to have enticed the event’s organisers up north.

He said: “It’s quite a coup to attract these awards as hundreds of people- including some well-known faces- attend the ceremony.

“We’re constantly working to bring important events to the North East, having hosted prestigious names such as Sabic, the FA, EE and Team GB in the last year alone.”

Caterer and Hotelkeeper group editor, Mark Lewis, said: “We’re certain that Rockliffe Hall will provide a suitably aspirational backdrop to these prestigious awards.”